India has second largest pharma and biotech talent pool: LinkedIn report

The most in-demand occupations in pharma and biotech are in the areas of data, research and regulatory affairs.

While advancements in science and research may have contributed to a huge growth in pharma and biotechnologies in the last few years, India has emerged as the second largest market for the pharma and biotech talent pool on LinkedIn, and contributes 13.7 per cent to the global pharma and biotech workforce. LinkedIn’s recently released e-book The Indian Pharma and Biotech Industry, provides insights on the industry landscape and the opportunities available for talent.

As per the report, the most in-demand occupations in pharma and biotech are trending in the areas of data, research, and regulatory affairs. Bioinformaticians, clinical research specialists, regulatory specialists, research analysts and data analysts are some of the most in-demand professionals in the pharma and biotech industry in India. In addition, talent in sales, operations, and research & development are highly sought after.

The report also suggests that in order to stay competitive globally and locally, Indian companies have increased their research & development (R&D) spends, leading to increased job opportunities and demand for R&D talent, making up for 15 per cent of total job switchers. This is aligned with the Central Government’s initiatives to encourage R&D in the pharma industry.

In fact, the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research (NIPER), has also been set up in locations including Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Hajipur, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Raebareli as part of this initiative.

The report shares insights on the state of the pharma and biotech talent pools in India, how it is moving and where to find them. According to the report, while India’s top metros, such as Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru have traditionally been hubs for biotech and pharma talent, New Delhi, Kolkata and Chandigarh are thriving grounds for talent in this sector.

The US is the most popular country for talent migration with respect to India. Close to 48 per cent of the talent from this sector in the US is moving to India and 36 per cent is migrating to the US from India. Moreover, 75 per cent of the talent outflow from India is to International HQ companies, with senior individual contributors and individual contributors accounting for 77 per cent of the migration out of India, even though they contribute 68 per cent of the total pharma and biotech talent pool in India.

The report suggests that talent migrating to other countries mainly comprises researchers, scientists, quality assurance professionals, stats programmers and data analysts. Talent coming to India, however, includes professionals hailing from sales followed by quality assurance and research.

LinkedIn’s report further reveals that the pharma and biotech workforce in India is remarkably active on social media and increasingly aware of opportunities. More than 67 per cent of pharma and biotech professionals on LinkedIn follow a company (India average 50 per cent). Moreover, 68 per cent of the workforce follows an average of eight companies and this has been coupled with a 55 per cent increase in the number of jobs posted on LinkedIn by pharma and biotech companies, over the last 12 months.